Dark Lord Potter
by Tyler Christopher Durden
Summary: Albus Dumbledore has made many mistakes over the years. But the biggest mistake he ever made, was placing Harry James Potter in the custody of the Dursleys’.
1. ChapterOne-TheDursley’sGreatestFear

A/N I'm sorry for not continuing HPATB or We're Not Freaks. They're not abandoned, I'm just bad at continuing to write. An right now, I've read a few Dark!Harry stories, so I've been having a ton of ideas for what I'd do to write one and felt like I needed to write it for a bit. But I will finish every story I start, it just might take longer than you guys and I want it to.

**Chapter One: The Dursley's Greatest Fear**

Harry James Potter was not an ordinary child. He always knew this. Ordinary children usually knew what their name was by the time they were five. Ordinary children didn't sleep in a cupboard under the stairs. Ordinary children didn't get beaten into unconsciousness by their family. Of course, they'd stopped that by the time he was eight. Not out of compassion for him. Out of fear.

Causing fear was the only way he was able to have a reasonable life. After the beatings stopped, it took three months before he used their fear to get a room. Of course, many of the kids at school still attacked him, but his cousin, Dudley, became a bit of a pariah for not joining in. And Harry always got his revenge.

It was an average day at the Dursley residence, with Dudley getting the post. "Um, H-Harry?" Harry turned to look at his slim cousin. "Y-y-you have a l-letter." Dudley held out a letter and turned his head away, as though he expected to be hit. Harry merely smirked and took the letter he was offered. After a few seconds of reading, he looked at his relatives.

"Do any of you know what Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is?" The Horse's face paled. "Ah, so you do know. Explain it, Horse." The Horse, known to people who weren't Harry as Petunia, twitched. Harry ignored the twitch, he knew his relatives despised his nicknames for them nearly as much as he despised them. His Uncle was called Walrus and his cousin was Whale. Unfortunately, Dudley had lost a lot of weight recently, probably because of the nickname, so Harry couldn't keep calling him Whale. Such a shame.

"W-w-well..." Horse took a breath. "We were g-going to t-tell you. W-we just d-didn't know h-how to b-bring it up." Harry sometimes wished they'd fear him a little bit less. Purely because he despised their stuttering. "Y-your m-mother was a w-w-w-witch. I b-believe she was r-referee to as a m-m-Muggleb-b-born."

"Muggleborn?" Harry didn't know the term. He hated not knowing things.

"Y-yes. They c-call n-non-m-magical p-people Muggles." Harry smirked. Muggle. Sounded suitably disgusting. "I think y-your f-f-father was a f-full w-w-wizard. They b-both w-went to H-Hogwarts. It it it's a school f-for m-magic. That's what y-you c-can d-d-do. Also, I-I should a-a-apologise. B-b-before w-we knew our p-place, w-w-w-we t-t-told you that y-your p-parents were d-d-d-d-d-drunks who d-died in a c-car crash."

Harry glared at her. He spoke in a voice far too cold for a child. "I take it they didn't then?" If anyone else had heard that, they would have though the literal embodiment of death was in the room. The Dursley's knew better. They didn't fear Death, they knew there was someone worse.

"N-n-n-n-n-no, they d-d-didn't. They w-w-were k-k-k-killed. B-by a D-D-Dark L-L-Lord. I-I-I s-swear, if w-we'd known our p-place when we f-first got you, we w-w-would've t-told the t-truth." Tears were dropping from her face. Tears of fear.

"Stop stuttering." Horse flinched. "The letter says I need to buy some things. Was there a place my mother went to get her things?"

Horse took a deep breath. "We went to a place in London called Diagon Alley. We had to go through a pub called The Leaky Cauldron. I'm afraid I can't remember the names of the shops. Some of them might have closed, anyway, it has been about 20 years. There was a bank there, you should probably go there to see if you have any inheritance." Harry was honestly impressed she avoided stuttering. It truly showed how much she feared him. Although there was one thing he was unclear about.

"Why did you not attempt to find out about any inheritance I might have? If only to steal it?"

"W-we didn't w-want to be n-near m-magic." Apparently, she couldn't help her stutter anymore. "B-besides, I c-could r-remember that m-muggle's c-couldn't s-see the entrance. W-we could only g-get in b-because L-Lily, y-your mum, held our h-hands." Harry glanced disdainfully at Horse.

"You're taking me there on Friday." Horse nodded furiously. "And never keep things from me again. Do I make myself clear?" All three of the Muggles nodded. "Good. I'd hate to do something you'd regret. By the way, Dudley, when is Piers' funeral?" The Muggles all paled dramatically.

Piers Polkiss was one of the more stubborn bullies. He'd frequently harass and attack Harry. Whilst Harry was allowed to use whatever money he Dursley's had, he often made a bit more money by selling illicit goods to the older students. No one knew how he got them and whenever someone tried to get him in trouble, there was never any evidence.

Piers didn't want to pay for Harry's prices and would try to bully him into given them away for free. Two months ago, he'd cornered Harry in the bathroom and pulled out a knife he stole from home. Harry hadn't realised at the time, but the reason he only got small cuts was because of his magic. The only reason the police didn't get involved was that Mr Polkiss was a friend of the chief of police from their private school. It also required a few bribes. Two days after the incident, Piers went missing.

He was found a week later inside of a blackberry bush. He never spoke of what happened, but everyone knew it was Harry. Obviously, there was absolutely nothing linking Harry to the disappearance, but that didn't stop people from staying away from him. Only one person didn't avoid Harry like the plague and that was a 14 year old alcoholic who bought whiskey from Harry. Piers avoided Harry as if his life depended on it. A week ago, Mr Polkiss came home from work and found Piers in the bathtub with his wrists slit. He was approximately an hour too late for his son.

All of the Dursley's understood that Harry could and would do the same to any of them. Only Horse realised that he would only do it to Dudley. Harry knew Dudley's death would destroy the two of them.

"The f-funeral is on S-Saturday." Harry smirked.

"Looks like you'll still be able to go, Horse." Horse shivered in fear. She knew the Polkiss' blamed Harry for their sons death. She didn't expect any of the Dursley's to get a warm welcome.

**31st July 1991, 11:32 AM, The Leaky Cauldron, Charing Cross Road, London, England, United Kingdom**

"Excuse me?" Tom looked down at the boy who'd just spoken. He suppressed a sigh. The boy in front of him looked exactly like an aristocratic Pureblood heir. The exact kind of spoilt brat he preferred to avoid. "Would you be able to let us through the barrier?"

Tom frowned. "Could yer guardian not do it?" Harry suppressed a look of disdain. A rude bartender with a cockney accent in a shabby bar. The only thing that could be worse is if he stuttered.

"Well," he looked at the floor. "My parents died in the war, you see." Tom's eyes widened in horror at being so rude to an orphan. "And I was sent to my closest living relatives, my aunt and uncle." He gestured to Horse, who was standing next to him. "Unfortunately, they're both Muggles, so they can't open the barrier. If it's too much bother, we can ask someone else..."

"No, no, no. I'm sorry for bein' a bit sharp with ya. I'm used to dealin' with rude customers who are too lazy to 'member the order of the bricks." Tom quickly left the bar and lead the young wizard and his Muggle aunt to the back.

"Awrigh' laddie, pay attention. Yeh tap this brick, then thissun and finally, yeh tap this one righ' here. Yeh got that?" Tom had used his finger to show the order to Harry. That way, if he hadn't gotten in first time, he could simply show him again, instead of waiting for the wall to close first.

Harry smiled. "Yes, Sir. I've got it." Tom have a largely toothless smile before repeating the motions with his wand. As Harry walked into the Alley he only had one thought that he quickly verbalised. "I'm home."

Harry and his aunt quickly walked to the end of the Alley, where Horse remembered the bank was. As Harry walked down the Alley, he wondered what people were expecting of him. Horse had given him a letter that had been delivered to the Dursley's alongside Harry. After reading it, he'd found out that he'd be famous because of that Dark Lord guy. Apparently, he'd survived something previously thought to be impossible to survive. He'd hidden his scar with some of Horse's makeup, though he'd be looking for an alternative immediately. It wasn't that he was ashamed of the scar, on the contrary, he thought it was quite nice. It certainly made sure everyone knew he wasn't average.

However, he didn't wish to be recognised today. He knew he wouldn't be recognised for any familial resemblance. Horse had given him a picture of his parents that his mother had sent her after the wedding. He knew he had his mother's eyes, though he doubted she ever had the same look of hatred and disdain he had when looking at the Muggles. He looked nothing like his father. He supposed he might have if he'd let his hair grow wild, but he didn't. Instead, he'd grown it long and kept it neatly tied back into a ponytail that reached about halfway down his back. Quite a few kids at school had called him a faggot because of it. Until he convinced them not to. He also thought he had a more refined look than his father. His hair was so black it seemed to suck in the light from around him. He wasn't a vain person, but he knew he was an attractive child, the kind who's cheeks are in danger any time an old lady sees them. And he knew he would be able to seduce the devil himself when he was older. Had he known more about the wizarding world, he'd recognise the Black heritage he held. As it was, he wouldn't find out about that for a few years.

Harry and Horse entered the opulent bank and Harry swiftly made his way to a teller. Horse reluctantly followed him. She didn't appear to want to approach one of the creatures. Harry didn't care want she wanted. "Good morning, sir. I have come to find out if I have any inheritance from my parents?" The creature looked up at him.

"Name?" Harry hid a scowl.

"Harry Potter." He was lucky only two other people were in the bank. Even luckier that neither of them were paying any attention to anything other than the creature in front of them. He liked his anonymity and would be sad when it was gone. He noticed a very slight widening of the eyes of whatever the thing in front of him was.

"I see." The creature got out of its chair. "Follow me, Lord Potter." Harry raised an eyebrow at the manner of address, but didn't say a word as he followed the thing. He knew that if he hadn't instructed Horse not to embarrass him, she'd have gasped or some such nonsense. After a few minutes walking through some corridors, the thing knocked on a door and led them into an office of some kind. The office was fairly spartan, with no decorations except for a lethal looking battle axe hanging on the wall behind a desk with one of the creatures sitting behind it. The battle axe had some sort of filigree pattern on it and looked like it could easily split someone completely in half. The walls appeared to be made out of some sort of stone, slate perhaps? Two opulent chairs were sitting in front of the desk, both having blood red cushions and gold inlays. The desk looked quite expensive. Perhaps mahogany? He'd heard people say that was expensive.

The first creature spoke briefly with the one sitting down in a foreign language of some sort. Harry assumed the language was only spoken by the creatures and was complete gobbledygook to every single Muggle on the planet. And every wizard on the planet with the exception of some extraordinary people who desire knowledge of everything. Harry knew he would become one of them. Even if it was only to find out what the creatures said when they thought no one could understand.

"Thank you, Griphook. You may go." The first creature, apparently called Griphook, nodded and left the room, closing the door behind itself. "Well, Lord Potter. So nice to finally meet you. My name is Barchoke. I am the Goblin in charge of the Potter accounts. What can I do for you?"

"Could you explain why you and Griphook called me Lord Potter?" He figured he'd get that question out of the way first. Plus, Barchoke had already answered his question of what they were.

"Of course, Lord Potter. In the Magical world, Family Names are everything. Some Family's, known as Houses, are considered to be Ancient, Nobel or both. These Houses gain Seats on the Wizengamot, the Wizarding Government. House Potter is one of these Houses. In fact, House Potter is a Most Ancient and Most Nobel House. I can recommend a book at Flourish and Blott's that will go into the intricacies of what that entails if you'd like?" Harry nodded and Barchoke wrote down the name on a piece of parchment.

"Anyway, the Heads of Houses that fall into these categories are given the title of Lord. Their wives are considered to be the Lady of the House. Other members of the House are called Baron's or Baroness' once they reach their majority. Now, normally, the Head of House chooses when to relinquish their Lordship. Or they die and the title is passed on to their eldest son. If they have no sons, then it falls to their eldest daughter. If they have no daughters, it continues to the closest living relative. In an event like the Potter's situation, where the entire Family has been wiped out, with the exception of a minor, the House is defunct, until the last remaining member reaches the age of 11, at which point they receive the title of Lord or Lady. Since you are a male, the title is Lord. Did you understand all of that, Lord Potter, or would you like me to repeat some things?"

"I understood, Sir. Could I have a look at my financial status, please?" The Goblin pulled out a file and handed it to Harry.

"The first page details the main Potter Vault, your parents Vaults and your own Trust Vault. I am afraid you will not be able to remove anything from the Potter Vault until you reach the age of majority. Your Trust Vault has 10,000 galleons deposited into it on your birthday every year. Since it has remained untouched for your entire life, you have 110,000 galleons at your disposal. Your parents Vaults have no money in them, they instead used them to store their personal belongings." Harry nodded his understanding.

"The second page details the various properties associated with the Potter Accounts. These include Potter Manor, alongside the River Wye in Wales, Dorea Stables, in Whitefield, Scotland, and 13 Diagon Alley, currently being rented out to a broomstick company called Broomstix, as per an agreement made by your father. They make a good profit. Potter Manor has a staff of three House Elves available."

"The third page lists the Potter investments, which are many and have resulted in the Potter's being very wealthy."

Harry read through the document, before turning back to Barchoke. "Well, Sir, this all seems to be in order, however I would like to know why you didn't ask me for any proof of who I am before giving it to me?"

Whatever reaction Harry expected Barchoke to have, a deep throaty laugh was not it. "Lord Potter, please know we here at Gringotts consider the security of our clients to be of the utmost of importance. My office has charms on it that will reveal any kind of magical trickery, allowing me to know if anyone is not who they say they are. Further more, the spells on that folder ensure that only the Head of the Most Ancient and Most Nobel House of Potter and their Account Manager can open it. We are also the only ones who can read it. To anyone else, it would appear to be empty."

Harry chuckled. It was a much warmer laugh than he normally had, however Barchoke still felt nervous. He hid it well, though. Horse did not hide it well. "Well, in that case, can you tell me anything about Knockturn Alley?" He'd noticed the Alley on the way to the bank and was intrigued.

Barchoke's face grew more serious. And considering the usual expressions of Goblins, that was quite a feat. "Lord Potter, that Alley is very dangerous. It is filled with all kinds of criminals and lowlifes. I would highly recommend that you not go down there without a wand and a bodyguard. And preferably another weapon of some kind."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Would I be able to hire a bodyguard from Gringotts? One who could follow me without anyone seeing them?" Barchoke grinned.

"That can be arranged, Lord Potter. One moment." Barchoke got up from their desk and approached the door. After opening it, they barked some orders at someone outside. They came back to sit down after a moment. "One of our mercenaries will be here shortly."

"Mercenaries?" Harry was surprised at the wording. "I thought I'd be hiring a bodyguard?"

"Mercenaries can be bodyguards, Lord Potter. Besides, the only Goblins we offer to wizards at all are mercenaries and warders." Harry nodded in response and waited patiently for the mercenary to arrive. He wasn't waiting long.

The doors opened to reveal an impressive Goblin, standing about the same height as Harry. His left ear appeared to be missing. A gruesome scar stretching from just below his right eye down to his left shoulder added to the intimidation of the already intimidating creature. Strapped to his back was a large battle axe with a similar pattern to the one behind Barchoke's desk, though the design was clearly different. The Goblin held out his hand to Harry. "Skullcrusher, at your service."

"Lord Harry Potter, at yours." The proffered handshake was accepted. "Excuse me for asking, but is that your real name?" He couldn't imagine any parent wanting to name their son Skullcrusher. "My apologies if this offends you, I just have to know."

Skullcrusher smirked. "No offence taken." His voice sounded like he'd been smoking for sixty years and then decided to swallow a cup full of gravel. "It is my real name." Make that ten cups of gravel. "I was named after my grandmother."

"I see." Harry was more confused than ever. Was Skullcrusher a unisex name? Or was this battle hardened mercenary a woman? "Can you follow me without being seen?" Skullcrusher barked out a sharp laugh. It sounded like a shotgun went off. A few seconds later and Skullcrusher completely disappeared from sight.

"Runes carved into the dragon hide." That explained what his tunic was made out of. Had he not said dragon, Harry would've assumed it was crocodile skin. "If I press them once, I turn completely invisible. A second time and I'm visible again."

Harry didn't even need a moment to consider his decision. "You're hired." He turned back to Barchoke. "Do I have to go down to my Vault to get some money out?"

Barchoke shook his head. "Of course not. If you'll provide a few drops of blood, I can set up a money pouch that's connected straight to your Vault." Harry used a switchblade he carried around with him to cut his finger and allowed the blood to drip onto the pouch, before stowing the weapon away. Skullcrusher, who was visible again, approached Harry and healed the small cut. Had Harry known more about Goblins, he would have recognised that they were both impressed he carried a blade. A few seconds passed, then the pouch glowed brightly, before quickly fading. "The pouch is now connected to your private Vault. All you have to do is put your hand inside the pouch and think about the amount you need. The appropriate amount of money will appear within for you to take out. Additionally, no one else will be able to use the pouch and it will return to your pocket if it gets more than thirty metres away from you." Harry nodded at the information before paying Skullcrusher for 10 hours worth of guarding. He didn't think he'd need that long, but it was better to be safe, than sorry. After that, Harry, Horse and an invisible Skullcrusher left the building to go to the wand shop.

"Ah, yes. Harry Potter. I was wondering when I'd be seeing you." Harry hid his shock at the old man suddenly appearing. "Yes... I remember your parents wands. Your fathers was Mahogany. Eleven inches. Good for transfiguration. While your mother preferred a wand more suited for charms. Willow and 10 and a quarter inches. Well, I say she preferred it, but it's really the wand that chooses the wizard." Harry didn't care for this mysticism. If it was important, he'd look it up later. The old man seemed to sense Harry's opinion and just got on with it. "Here try this wand." Harry took it and didn't even get to do anything before the creep took it back. "No, I don't thinks so, how about this?" After the fourth wand, Harry was a bit impatient.

"Look, I don't mean to be rude, but is there some way we can speed this up? I have lots of things I need to buy today." The old man looked disgruntled, but still answered him.

"For two galleons and a drop of blood, I can find out exactly what your wand will be made of." Harry quickly paid the man and cut his finger again. The man made Harry drop the blood onto a piece of parchment, and some words began to appear. He healed Harry's wound with a lazy flick of his wand, before studying the parchment and gasping. "I-I've never seen this before!" Harry raised an eyebrow. "I-I have a wand with the appropriate core, but the wand wood... well, it isn't wood." Harry frowned and asked what he meant. "The wand you're most suited for will be made from the Core from this one and a basilisk fang carved into a wand's shape." A small box floated over to the two of them.

"Well, can you get a basilisk fang?" The old man looked up in shock.

"The last basilisk to ever be seen was in the 16th century. I'm sorry, but you'll have to make do with this wand. It won't be prefect, but it'll be much better than any other wand." Harry couldn't quite hide his disappointment. "If you are ever able to get a basilisk fang, I'll take the phoenix feather out of that one and place it in the fang, free of charge." Harry nodded his agreement. "That wand costs nine galleons." Harry quickly paid the strange old man and left. "We can expect great things from you Harry Potter. Great things indeed." After that, Harry quickly bought everything he needed within Diagon Alley, including a bottomless bag to store everything and a full wardrobe of wizarding clothes from Madam Malkins and headed to the entrance of Knockturn Alley.

After wandering around for a bit, he came across a book store. He entered the shop and began perusing the books, only to be interrupted in his search by a voice. "Are you sure you are in the right place, little one?" Harry turned to look at a large muscular man with black hair and a piglike face.

Harry made sure to act as innocent as possible. "Of course I am, Sir. This is a book store and I love reading. How else am I to learn?" The man smirked.

"Well, not many people would be ok with you learning about this kind of magic. In fact, many would prefer that no one knew of it."

"But, knowledge is important." He put on a confused face. "Why would anyone hide information? That isn't right." The man in front of him laughed.

"You're right. It isn't right. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lord Dominic Crabbe. What's your name?" Harry tensed imperceptibly. He wasn't prepared to give up his anonymity just yet. Especially not to some stranger who'd talk to a random child in a shop.

"My name's Harry. Harry Dursley." It pained him to say that and he'd make sure the Dursley's knew about his displeasure later.

"Well, Mr Dursley, I own this shop, so if you have any books you'd like to buy, simply bring them to me." After about an hour of searching, Harry brought about twenty books to the checkout. "Dear Merlin. I wish my son was like you. Unfortunately, he took after me in looks and his mother in brains." That seemed to crack him up a bit. "You know, if you're planning on taking these to Hogwarts, you might want this bag." Crabbe placed a bag on the counter. "It's full to the brim with charms that will hide anything you don't want people to see. Even Dumbledore won't be able to find out what's in there." One hundred and eighty-three galleons later, and Harry and Horse were on their way home, with an invisible goblin riding on top of the car. He'd been paid to guard Potter for ten hours, so he was going to guard Potter for ten hours, whether he needed to or not.


	2. ChapterTwo-NewAlliances

A/N For some reason I couldn't put spaces in the title. I do not own the rights to Harry Potter.?

Chapter Two: New Alliances

**1st September 1991, 10:43 AM, , Platform 9 and Three Quarters, King's Cross Station, London, England, United Kingdom**

Harry Potter was finally going to Hogwarts. He couldn't wait. He was reading his transfiguration textbook. He would have preferred to read one of the books he'd got from Crabbe's bookstore, but he didn't want to risk them being confiscated. He'd done a lot of research with his books. For one thing, he'd found out that a lot of people think being able to talk to snakes is evil. Being a parselmouth himself, he disagreed. He had decided to avoid talking to snakes though.

He had also tried to think of a term for Muggleborns that didn't associate them with Muggles. The best he'd come up with was first generation magical. Someone opened the door and he looked up. The boy looked a lot like Lord Crabbe. The boy, presumably Crabbe's son, Vincent, sneered and left, mumbling about Ravenclaw poofters. Harry sighed. He'd have like to be friends with Vincent, if only because he liked Lord Crabbe. He was glad he'd managed to find a magical method of hiding his scar. He didn't want Vincent trying to befriend him just because he was famous. Of course, he wasn't going to hide it everyday. Just for today so he wasn't surrounded by people who wanted to use him for his fame.

It didn't take long for the train to leave the station. No one had joined him in his compartment. He continued reading, quickly finishing his textbook. Nothing particularly interesting happened until approximately three o'clock.

The door opened sharply. "Excuse me, have you seen a toad? Neville's lost his." Harry looked up from his book about Occlumency.

"No, I haven't." He turned back to his book to continue reading about how to defend his mind.

"Ooh, that book isn't on the list of school books, you have to let me borrow it." Harry looked up. Before he hadn't paid any attention to them, he'd just looked up to be polite. The girl was wearing smart, expensive clothes and appeared to have a birds nest for her hair. The boy, Neville, was blonde and quite chubby. He looked nervous. Harry looked at the girl, the one who had spoken.

"No, I don't." He went back to studying Occlumency.

"What?"

"I said no. You can't borrow my book when I'm done with it." This time he didn't bother looking at them.

The girl huffed. "You're being rude, you know? You should share what you know."

"Hermione, lets just go." Neville seemed to get the hint that Harry didn't want to talk to them. Then he whispered something quietly to the girl, who was apparently called Hermione. However, Harry still heard him. "He looks like the kind of pureblood who hates muggleborns."

"Neville, I'm a half-blood." Neville and Hermione stopped leaving to hear what Harry had to say. "And I don't care about anyone's blood status." Harry looked at them over his book. "However, I dislike people who appear to think I owe them something. And I dislike people who think they have any right to my property." He turned back to his book. "Oh, and don't use the term Muggleborn. It's insulting. Use the term first generation magical instead. Now, please leave." He didn't bother looking at them.

"I'm sorry for coming off as rude." Harry looked up at Hermione. No one had ever apologised to him genuinely. The Dursley's had apologised from fear, but no one else had ever apologised for anything. Actually, that bartender had apologised for being rude. "I just love reading and learning so much, I guess I didn't think about my manners." Harry decided she could be useful in the future, so decided to throw her a bone.

"I understand that. Apology accepted. I'm still not going to let you borrow it when I'm done, but I've heard Hogwarts has an expansive library. Perhaps there will be a copy there." Hermione smiled and nodded. Hermione and Neville both left after that. Nothing else happened until the Hogwarts Express arrived at Hogsmeade Station. Except for people poking their heads in looking for Harry Potter.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over 'ere!" Harry looked around for whoever had such a booming voice. He was shocked to see an obvious part-giant standing around beckoning the first years over to him. He decided to watch the part-giant carefully, just in case he'd inherited some of the natural viciousness of the giants. "Firs' year over 'ere!" Harry joined the other first years in following the man. Eventually, they reached a shore with many small boats tied up. "No more'n four to a boat!"

Harry ended up in a boat with a pompous boy who introduced himself as Zacharias, and a pair of twins of Indian origin. Harry ignored the boy, who seemed to be insinuating something negative about the twins origins. Whilst he was sure the boy was well connected, you couldn't be that self-important without knowing people, he had no desire to befriend such a person. Even if it was to use them. Besides, he didn't know if India had its own forms of magic not taught in Britain. So it would be good to not burn bridges with the twins.

After a short boat ride, they entered what was known as the Great Hall. After a short song by the Hat, Professor McGonagall called "Abbott, Hannah" to be Sorted. The Hat didn't take long to Sort her into Hufflepuff.

"Bones, Susan." Harry made sure to pay attention. His reading had shown she was the niece of the Head of the DMLE. Although, he did know he was Darker than her family tended to associate with.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" He stifled a groan. Hufflepuff's weren't exactly known for tolerating the Dark Arts. And he knew quite a few spells, thanks to Lord Crabbe

"Boot, Terrence."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Brocklehurst, Amanda."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Brown, Lavender."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Bulstrode, Millicent."

"SLYTHERIN!" Harry raised an eyebrow. A potential ally. He looked at her and realised that she did not have the looks he wanted. She'd probably harm his reputation.

"Corner, Michael."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Cornfoot, Stephen."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Crabbe, Vincent." Harry was correct. The boy from earlier was Lord Crabbe's son. He was quickly Sorted into the House of snakes.

"Davis, Tracy."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Entwhistle, Kevin."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Finch-Fletchley, Justin."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Finnigan, Seamus."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Goldstein, Anthony."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Goyle, Gregory."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Granger, Hermione." The First Generation witch from earlier. She could be a useful ally. He fully expected her to be put into Ravenclaw, based on her earlier statements. He was wrong. He hadn't thought of her as a lion. Maybe she could be his in over there.

"Greengrass, Daphne." Harry paid close attention. The heiress to the Greengrass Family. A very influential family that was firmly Grey. A useful ally. Pretty too.

"SLYTHERIN!" Yes, a very useful ally.

"Hopkins, Wayne."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Jones, Megan."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Li, Susan." A potential source of Chinese magics?

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Longbottom, Neville." The boy who'd lost his toad. Had he realised he was talking to a Longbottom, he would have helped find the toad. Gain a potential ally.

"MacDougal, Morag."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Macmillan, Ernest." A pompous, but influential family. Owned a demiguise farm. Could be a potential ally?

"HUFFLEPUFF!" Maybe not.

"Malfoy, Draco." A Malfoy? Harry wasn't sure if the family would bear a grudge over the whole killing Voldemort thing. He'd let Malfoy make the first move and see where things went from there.

"SLYTHERIN!" No surprises there.

"Malone, Roger."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Moon, Lily."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Nott, Theodore."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Parkinson, Pansy."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Patil, Padma."

"RAVENCLAW!" So, they were intelligent. That boded well for potential foreign magic.

"Patil, Parvati."

"GRYFFINDOR!" Harry's eyebrow rose. How unusual. Normally, siblings shared a House. Just look at the Weasley's.

"Perks, Sally-Anne."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Potter, Harry."

The entire hall was surprised to see the epitome of an aristocratic pureblood heir walk forward. Some of the students had even wondered if Sirius Black had managed to have a child before his arrest. Some of the more cynical students would suspect that Lily Potter had an affair before the night was out. Harry, meanwhile, was having a very well hidden panic attack. What if the Hat told the Headmaster about what he'd done to Piers? He'd be expelled for sure! Maybe even sent to Azkaban. The Hat went onto his head and he immediately heard chuckling.

"You think I would reveal any of what I see in here? Please, if I did that, Voldemort would have never been a student here. I exist to help the students become the best they can. No matter what their future holds. If the Ministry ever found out what secrets I've kept, they'd consider me a dangerous Dark Artefact and order me destroyed. Anyway, I've kept you long enough. Enjoy your time in SLYTHERIN!" Harry quickly plastered the look of an excited child eager to do their best on his face and walked happily to the Slytherin table, to the shock of the entire school. Whispers that he was a future Dark Lord began before he sat down.

"Rivers, Oliver."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Roper, Sophie."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Runcorn, Terrance."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Smith, Sally."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Smith, Zacharias." The pompous prick from earlier.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Thomas, Dean."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Turpin, Lisa."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Weasley, Ronald." Harry paid close attention. Weasley's never had much money, but they were always extremely skilled. They just didn't have ambitions that led to a lot of money.

"GRYFFINDOR!" Obviously.

"Zabini, Blaise."

"SLYTHERIN!"

Dumbledore rose and gave a few words that Harry ignored, before announcing the feast had started. Harry ate and ignored the sneers from some of the other Slytherins. Eventually, the feast came to an end. After a warning from Dumbledore about dying on the third floor, they were lead to the Slytherin Common room by the fifth year Prefects, Gemma Farley and Terrence Higgs. After finding out the password, "alchemy", Farley and Higgs led them into the common room and gave them a speech about how not all Slytherin's are Death Eaters. After that, Harry went to his room and locked the door. He'd seen the looks of some Slytherin's and he'd rather not be attacked his first night. He practiced some of the Occlumency techniques his book mentioned and drifted off, thinking about his plans for the future.

**2nd September 1991, 7:46 AM, Slytherin Dorm Rooms, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

Harry looked up from his book towards the door. After thinking on it for a few moments, he decided to answer whoever had knocked on the door. "Hello, Mr Potter. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Draco Malfoy. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Malfoy held out his hand in greeting. Both Harry and Malfoy ignored the two bodyguards Malfoy had.

Harry shook Malfoy's hand. "Mr Malfoy, was that a deliberate snub?" Malfoy's face dropped and he asked what Harry meant. "Apparently not. For future reference, my appropriate title is Lord."

"Of course, Lord Potter. I didn't mean any offence." He looked like he was mentally debating something. "Lord Potter, forgive me for asking, but I thought you only get a title when you turn 17?"

"When you're the last of your family, you get the title when you're eleven. May I ask why you knocked on my door?"

"Oh, right, yeah." Malfoy seemed to get some of his confidence back. "I wanted to know if you needed someone to help you avoid members of unworthy families." Harry smirked.

"I don't, but I do see the advantages of befriending a Malfoy. However, I do have some concerns." Malfoy's smile became a bit strained. "Namely, does your family bear a grudge over Voldemort's death?" The three boys flinched at the Dark Lord's name.

Malfoy glared at Harry. "Everyone knows that father was Imperiused to obey the Dark Lord. Of course we wouldn't bear a grudge against you." Harry raised his eyebrow in response.

"Two things. One: Voldemort was _a_ Dark Lord. Not _the_ Dark Lord. Two: do you really want my opinion of your father to be of a weak minded fool who couldn't keep control of his own mind?"

"Now, you listen here, Potter!" Malfoy was trying to burn Harry to death with his eyes. "My father is a great man! He is not and never has been a weak minded fool!" Harry smirked.

"I'm sure he isn't. Which means he willingly joined Voldemort. Which means he has a reason to despise me. So, I want to know if he will ever act against me. Will he?" Realisation dawned in Malfoy's eyes, Harry would not blindly believe what the Malfoy's claimed.

"My family does not bear a grudge against you. Though, I am curious as to why you aren't judging my father?"

Harry smirked. "Your father believed in a cause enough to risk his life and reputation for it. I might disagree with some of what he believed, but I respect him for his courage."

Malfoy looked sharply at Harry. "Some of what he believed?"

"We can discuss it at another time, Draco. Now, we should probably make our way to breakfast." The quartet began to make their way to the great hall.

"So, Lord Potter. What family were you raised by? If it's not too personal of a question?" Draco's face showed his concern for offending Harry.

"Well, I know I made a big deal of the Lord Potter thing, but that was because you were calling me Mr Potter. If I called you Mr Malfoy, I'd expect you to call me Lord Potter. Since I'm calling you Draco, please, call me Harry." Draco smiled and nodded his agreement. "As to what family I was raised by, I was raised by my mothers sister and her family."

Draco frowned. "But, aren't they muggles?"

Harry sneered. "Unfortunately, yes." Draco's eyes widened in shock. So did Crabbe and Goyle's, but no one was paying attention to them.

"Then, how do you know so much about magic?" At Harry's confused glance, Draco explained more. "You not only knew about the Malfoy family, but you knew about my fathers allegations. Not to mention, your knowledge about titles and how the Imperius Curse works. And the Dark Lords beliefs! And you know about the wizarding custom of men wearing their hair long and tied back."

"Well, I didn't find out about magic until I got my Hogwarts letter. My relatives never saw fit to tell me. Stupid muggles." Even Draco was taken aback at the venom he used when saying the word muggle. "So, naturally, I did as much research into wizarding customs as possible. As well as a few other studies. Although, I never found out about the long hair custom. I just didn't trust any muggles to be near my neck with scissors. I just tied it back to keep it from getting in my face." He didn't mention the fact that Horse despised long hair.

"I see." Draco decided that he'd help Harry know as much about pureblood customs as possible. Whilst trying to see just how much Harry hated muggles. "Well, it's mostly traditional families who follow that custom. And it's usually just the Head's of House who follow it."

Harry nodded. "Although, it does make me wonder why Mr Crabbe called me a poofter when he saw me on the train. I assumed it was because of my hair, but if it's a tradition, then I must have been mistaken." Draco glared at Crabbe.

"You called him a poofter? What in Merlin's name is wrong with you?" Harry let Draco know it was nothing important, but Draco disagreed. "No, it is important, Harry! While homosexuality is illegal, that's merely because gays can't have children. No one actually has anything against gays, in fact most wealthy purebloods, like my father and Lord Crabbe, often indulge in homosexual acts. It's an open secret in the wizarding world! As long as you don't have a romantic relationship, it's considered fine."

Harry frowned. "It is hypothetically possible in the Muggle world for two gays to have a child." Draco looked at Harry in shock. "Admittedly, they do need a female to offer an egg, but it's possible. It's usually done for people who can't have kids naturally, for medical reasons, but it could probably be used for gays."

Draco's mouth was wide open. "You mean the muggles are more advanced than us about something?"

Harry sneered. "Yes, and surprisingly, it isn't something for war. Muggles like war a lot."

Draco chewed on his bottom lip for a few moments. "I'm going to have to write to my father about this. Maybe he'll be able to pay someone to find a magical method. And change the laws." By this time, they'd reached the Great Hall and sat down to breakfast.

After a few minutes, a tall figure cloaked in darkness approached them. "Draco, your timetable." Draco happily took the timetable from his godfather. "Potter." The hook nosed man, who Harry mentally named Crow, thrust out an arm holding the all-important parchment out. As soon as Harry took the timetable, he threw two more at Crabbe and Goyle without a word and stalked off.

"My godfather doesn't seem to like you, Harry." Harry nodded his agreement and ate some toast. "Probably because of your father, they hated each other, according to my father." Whilst Harry thought about that information, Draco glanced at his timetable. "Transfiguration first. Just so you know, Harry, McGonagall is an animagus. My father told me so."

Harry's face screwed up slightly as he tried to remember if he'd read about animagi. "An animagus is someone who can turn into an animal, right?" Draco nodded. "What animal can she turn into?"

Draco swallowed his mouthful of eggs. "She can turn into a cat. According to my father, she does it at the start of the first class of the year. She does it to show the possibilities of transfiguration. It's impressive to mudbloods, but no one else."

"Draco." Draco shivered. For a second he thought of his fathers stories about the Dark Lord and thought he'd come back from the dead. Then he realised it was his new friend. "Never say that word in front of me again. My mother was a 'Mudblood' and she died to save me." Draco could practically feel his fork freezing over.

"S-sorry, Lord Potter. I didn't mean to offend."

"Of course you didn't." Draco almost flinched at how quickly Harry's voice changed from cold and threatening to friendly and warm. "Now, we should finish up here soon and make our way to transfiguration. We don't want to be late, especially not on the first day of school. In our free period afterwards, I was going to go to the library and do some reading. Do you want to come?" Harry sounded so innocent that Draco almost thought he'd imagined the change in tone.

"Of course I do. After transfiguration, if you go straight to the library, I'll ask around the other Slytherin's and see if any of them would like to join us." He might think he'd imagined the tone shift, but he wasn't going to stay in the same room as Harry without witnesses. "If you don't mind, that is?"

Harry smiled. "Of course not. The more, the merrier. Mr Crabbe, Mr Goyle." He turned to each one as he said their name. "Will you be joining us?" Honestly, Draco has forgotten they were there.

Goyle took a sip of his pumpkin juice. "Well, Lord Potter. I'm not really the sort of person who particularly enjoys the library. I'm afraid I'll have to decline." There was also the fact that Goyle was absolutely terrified of Harry after that change in tone. "I think Vince feels the same way." Crabbe nodded furiously.

"What a shame." Harry was almost glad. He didn't want to surround himself with morons who can barely tell one end of a wand from the other. "Oh, well. I'm sure Draco and I will find it quite enjoyable. Along with whoever else he can convince to join us." The four Slytherin's quickly finished off the rest of their breakfast and hurried off to transfiguration.

**2nd September 1991, 10:01 AM, 2nd Floor Corridor, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

"Draco!" Draco turned in irritation towards Crabbe. "Listen. Me and Greg talked about this in transfiguration and came to a decision. I saw Potter on the train and he was reading a book, so I don't think we'll enjoy his company. Since you want to be friends with him, that means you'll end up being a nerd too." Draco scowled.

"What is the point of this, Crabbe? I've got to talk to Nott and Zabini. Maybe Greengrass and Parkinson as well."

"That's another thing, Draco." He shifted his attention to Goyle. "You're not calling us by our names anymore. We're Crabbe and Goyle to you now." Goyle took a deep breath. "We think it might be better if we parted ways. You know, made other friends. Hope you don't mind." Before Draco could respond, he was interrupted by an unwanted voice.

"Awwww, are the lickle Death Eater's breaking up with each other? Such a shame, you made such a nice couple. I assume Potter was going out with Crabbe?" Draco glared at the intruder.

"No one asked you, Weasley. What are you even doing here? You're not even in our transfiguration class." The youngest Weasley boy smirked.

"Oh, I couldn't resist seeing the fabled Harry Potter. But it seems even a Dark Lord like him couldn't bear the stench of your two ogre pals. I don't blame him."

Draco sneered and glanced at the boy standing next to the Weasley. "I'm surprised Longbottom can bear the stench of poverty coming from you, Weasel."

Weasley glared at Draco. "SHUT IT! Or I'll beat you so hard you'll be in St Mungo's for the rest of Hogwarts!"

Goyle laughed. "As if a muggle-lover like you could hurt a fly. I doubt you could hurt any of us. Well, deliberately. I suppose you could accidentally hurt us from your own incompetence, Weasel." For the second time in five minutes, someone Goyle wasn't expecting interrupted his conversation.

"What is the meaning of this?" The three Slytherin's looked up at the Head of Gryffindor and felt their stomach's sink. All three had been told about her bias towards her own house. Draco decided to talk. She wouldn't believe him, but he was more well spoken than his two friends.

"Mr Weasley came up to us and started insulting us." Before he could add anything else, Weasel interrupted.

"That's a lie!" He turned to Professor McGonagall. "We were just walking through, when these dirty snakes started mouthing off and calling us blood-traitors and Muggle-lovers! I think one of them said the M-word, too."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "I see." She turned to the Slytherin's. "I'm afraid I'll have to take ten points from each of you. And each one of you now has a detention with Mr Filch on Friday for such blatant bigotry. You should all be ashamed!"

The three Slytherin's sighed in annoyance. "Excuse me, Professor?" Everyone turned to look at the girl who'd just spoken. "I saw the whole thing!"

"Yes, Miss Bones?"

The Hufflepuff took a deep breath. "Mr Malfoy's telling the truth. The three Slytherin's were talking about something to do with the library, when Mr Weasley and Mr Longbottom came up to them. Mr Weasley accused them of being Death Eaters and insinuated that they were homosexuals. Mr Malfoy just asked Mr Weasley what he was doing here and Mr Weasley said he wanted to meet Harry Potter. He also called Mr Potter a Dark Lord and threatened to beat all of them up so badly that they'd need to go to St Mungo's."

"That's a dirty lie!" Weasley was bright red. "I guess her parents inheritance isn't enough for her so she has to bed a Malfoy to get the galleons she wants!" Even Draco was taken aback by Weasel's outburst.

"MR WEASLEY!" Weasel's face fell as he realised he'd said that in front of a teacher. "Never in all my years have I ever heard such a foul statement! Especially not from a Weasley! Come with me!"

"But, I have a free period now! I wanted to ask my brothers where the kitchen is!" Draco winced in sympathy when he saw the glare she levelled at Weasel. Then he realised he was giving his sympathy to a Weasley. "Fine, but where are we going?"

"Ta write a letter ter yer mother!" Weasel paled, but didn't argue. He might not be the brightest _Lumos_ from the wand, but he still knew that when McGonagall's accent came out, you were in deep trouble. "Misters Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle." The three stiffened in fear. "Yer detentions are cancelled and the lost points are restored. I apologise fer not listening ta you in the firs' place." The three Slytherin's sighed in relief. "Come, Weasley!" Weasel glumly slunk after Professor McGonagall. The way he was going about it, you'd think he was going to be Kissed.

Draco turned to their saviour. "Thank you, Miss Bones. That was very honourable of you." Miss Bones turned towards him.

"It's nothing, Mr Malfoy. I am a Hufflepuff and a Bones. We pride ourselves on our fairness. It wouldn't be right of me to just allow you to be punished for someone else insulting you." Draco nodded.

"I understand, but so many would have just stood aside and done nothing. I also cannot believe the vile things he insinuated about you. He had no right to say such a thing and the fact he even thought of it in the first place disgusts me!"

Miss Bones smiled. "Thank you for your kind words. I too am disgusted that he would say such a thing. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to return to my common room." Draco smiled and said his goodbyes before searching for the Slytherin's he'd been about to talk to before he'd been rudely interrupted.

He found Zabini and Nott leaning against the wall, having been watching the entire thing happen. Before Draco could say anything, Zabini spoke. "So, you and Potter want an alliance with us?" Draco raised his eyebrows. "Oh, come on. Surely you figured we'd have eavesdropped on your conversation? I doubt any Slytherin wasn't eavesdropping."

Draco nodded. "True. It is the Slytherin way. So, are you open to an alliance?"

Zabini smirked. "Theo and I were quietly discussing it whilst Weasley was making everyone hate him. Theo's all for it because Potter is his kind of person. A cunning Slytherin who spends his free periods in the library. I'm not opposed, as long as I find out more about Potter's beliefs." Draco smiled.

"Well, Harry told me earlier that he'd discuss it later. I don't even know all of his beliefs yet, Blaise." Blaise raised his eye. Both at the admission of not knowing and at the familiarity Draco addressed him. "And those I do know are just assumptions. Now, would you two help me find Greengrass and Parkinson? Both are well connected and could be valuable allies." Left unsaid was the fact that both girls were pretty. Both Blaise and Theo confirmed they'd help him look, though Theo clearly wanted to go straight to the library.

**2nd September 1991, 10:27 AM, Library, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

"Ah, Harry! You're at this table." Harry looked up at Draco and the others he'd brought with him. He was pleased to see Greengrass. She was well connected. Hopefully, she was willing to put effort in and wasn't just looking for a well connected, rich pureblood to marry. He had plans that didn't involve freeloaders.

"Yes, right here, Draco. What took you so long?" Draco scowled.

"Weasley showed up after you left and spouted off about you being a Dark Lord and how I'm a Death Eater. Almost got detention because of him." Harry raised an eyebrow. "Well, McGonagall is known to be quite biased towards her own house and we didn't just sit there and let him slander us." Harry nodded. He might not have known about the wizarding world for long, but he'd been able to figure that out pretty quickly. Luckily, he'd managed to make her quite impressed with him. He assumed it probably had at least a little bit to do with his parents, who he'd heard were Gryffindors.

"Completely understandable." He turned to the others. "Now, I haven't been formally introduced to any of you. I'm Lord Harry Potter, it's a pleasure to meet you all." He smiled widely.

"Please, Harry. Allow me to make the introductions." Harry nodded towards Draco. "This fine gentleman is Blaise Zabini. His family has been the main exporter of goods from Italy for generations. Of course, they're now most well known for his mother's beauty and lack of luck with men."

Harry had managed to find out about Erminia Zabini and her common status as a widow in his reading. Blaise Zabini was an olive skinned young man with short cropped black hair and brown eyes. He held his hand out for Harry to shake. "A pleasure to meet you, Blaise."

Blaise smiled warmly. "The pleasure is all mine, Lord Potter."

"Please, call me Harry. If I'm calling you by your first name, call me by my first name." Blaise nodded his head in agreement.

"And this, Harry, is Theodore Nott, heir to the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Nott. If the rest of his family is anything to go by, he'll be a true scholar and most likely get all O's in his NEWTs." The bespectacled boy with piercing blue eyes and neatly combed black hair stepped forwards.

The Nott's. Two members of that family had claimed to be under the Imperius Curse after the previous war. Obviously, they'd been lying, so he'd have to ask Theodore the same question he'd asked Draco at first. "Wonderful to meet you, Theodore. It's always nice to meet a fellow scholar."

Theodore smiled. "Of course it is. Oh, and please, call me Theo. All of my friends do." Harry quickly agreed with a handshake.

"And this magnificent figure of beauty is Daphne Greengrass, Heiress to the Most Noble House of Greengrass." Daphne laughed a high pitched tinkling sound and accused Draco of flattery.

The Greengrass' were a very successful neutral family with a seat on the Wizengamot and investments in every business under the sun. Well renowned for their beauty, there'd even been rumours they had some Veela blood in them. Looking at Daphne, he could easily see why such rumours existed. "Draco isn't flattering you, merely being honest." He grasped her hand and brushed his lips lightly across the back of her hand.

"I stand corrected, Lord Potter. Two boys are flattering me."

"I'm sure Blaise and Theo would be happy to make that four. And please, call me Harry." She smiled and agreed.

"And last, but not least, Pansy Parkinson, heiress to the Most Ancient House of Parkinson." She seemed slightly annoyed to have not received a more flowery introduction, but she still held her hand out for Harry to kiss.

The Parkinson's were another family with allegedly Imperiused Death Eaters as members. Harry could see she'd grow into quite a beauty when she was older, but unfortunately for now, she had a bit of an upturned nose that reminded him of a pug.

As he grasped her hand in introduction, the secondary purpose of it made him find out more about her. Whilst he had been genuinely introducing himself to everyone with his handshakes, he was also using it as an opportunity to reach out with his magic to subtly gain an understanding of their personality's. Everyone before Miss Parkinson was someone Harry didn't mind knowing. Miss Parkinson, however, was the exact person Harry didn't want to deal with. She wasn't at Hogwarts for an education. She considered such a thing as being beneath her as a pureblooded witch. She was at Hogwarts to find a husband. Preferably a rich pureblood. Of course, he didn't want to obviously snub her. So he kissed her hand in the same way he'd kissed Daphne's. "So wonderful to meet you."

She batted her eyes. "It's so wonderful to meet you as well, Lord Potter. You seem like such a wonderful person to be around."

Harry smiled warmly. "Thank you for the compliment. Now." He turned to the table at large. "I know much more about all of you, than you know about me. So, is there anything you'd like to know about me?"

This was as good an opportunity as Blaise was going to get. "Well, I was wondering what your beliefs are?" He, like most of the table, decided to ignore Harry's snub of Parkinson. It wasn't like she'd even noticed.

Harry chuckled. "Well, I believe in magic in all else. Nothing matters, but magic. As witches and wizards, we owe it to ourselves and to magic to be the best we can possibly be. I know I will do my best to learn every facet of magic possible and I don't think I will have much patience for those that squander their gift of magic." Parkinson's attempt at a flirtatious smile became rather strained once he said this. It took mere moments before she made her excuses and left.

Harry turned back to Blaise. "As to the rest of my beliefs, I'd prefer to discuss in a more private location. After dinner, come to my room and we'll have a discussion about it." The others all agreed to that and begun reading books of their own, chatting occasionally.

**2nd September 1991, 13:33 PM, Greenhouse One, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

"M-Malfoy!" Draco and Harry looked towards the voice. It had come from Longbottom. "I just w-wanted to apologise for earlier. I know I didn't say anything to you, but I came there with Ron. H-he had no right to accuse you of being a Death Eater."

Draco smiled. "Apology accepted Mr Longbottom. I know Weasley's threat couldn't have been easy for you to hear. Weasley was completely out of line towards me, Crabbe, Goyle and Bones, but he was also out of line towards you." Longbottom nodded.

"And Lord Potter, I know you weren't there, but I also w-wanted to apologise to you. I don't know if you heard, but Ron accused you of being a Dark Lord. Pure nonsense of course. You're only eleven, you couldn't be a Dark Lord if you wanted to."

Harry smiled. "Apology accepted, Neville. Although, I must admit, you don't appear to be the type to partake in bullying?" Neville flinched at the blunt statement of fact. "So, I am curious as to why you agreed to go with Weasley?"

"Um, w-well, Ron said he wanted to meet you and asked if I wanted to come with. I thought he j-just wanted to introduce himself and make friends, but obviously I w-was mistaken."

"Oh, I see." Harry nodded. "I'm a little surprised Weasley hasn't come up to insult us all. Surely he isn't ok with you talking to Slytherin's?"

Neville held his head up high. "I can talk to whomever I want. I don't need permission from anyone!" He relaxed a bit and gave Harry and Draco a wry grin. "Besides, I asked Dean and Seamus to stop Ron from doing anything idiotic."

Draco sneered. "That'll be nearly impossible." Neville and Harry both snickered, before Professor Sprout called everyone into the lesson and the conversation stopped.


	3. ChapterThree-TheSlytherinCourt

A/N Sorry for taking so long to finish this chapter. I want to get better at writing more regularly, but I'm a piece of shit. I will probably never own the rights to Harry Potter and will probably never even get the chance to interact with those that do.

Chapter Three - The Slytherin Court

**2nd September 1991, 19:37 PM, Harry Potter's Room, The Dungeons, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

Harry smiled at his new friends. "So, what is it about my beliefs that you'd like to know?"

"Well, I'd like to know why you said you agreed with some of what the Death Eaters believed?" Everyone gasped at Draco. Draco quickly gave a summary of his earlier conversation for the others benefit. "I know you don't share the Death Eaters belief that Muggleborn's are inferior, so what parts did you agree with?"

Harry smiled. "First generation magical." At Draco's confused glance, he elaborated. "They're magical, Draco, there's no need to constantly associate them with muggles." Theo, Blaise and Daphne's eyes widened. This was the first time Harry had said that word in front of them and they could scarcely believe the complete and utter disdain he said it with.

"As to what parts of the Death Eater philosophy I agree with? I agree that we should not mingle with muggles. The muggles are disgusting, murderous creatures that would want us all eradicated if they knew we existed. Those that consent to having children with a muggle barely deserve the gift of magic." The others all nodded. None of them had ever met a muggle and none of them would want to. And having children with a muggle? The very thought repulsed them.

"I grew up surrounded by muggles. They despised me and made no secret of it. My family would have killed me and laughed about it, if they thought they could get away with it." His friends gasped in shock. The boys had known the muggles were barbaric, but they couldn't have known it was that bad. Daphne, having been sheltered from the harsh realities of the world, teared up. "Had the other muggles known what I am, I don't think I'd be here today." The three boys grew angry and started to think of ways to make the muggles pay, whilst Daphne had to blink hard to avoid crying. "I'm not blind in my hatred of them, there will be some that would be fine with magical people existing. But even those few would harm wizardkind, without meaning to. We're better off alone."

"What about your other beliefs?" Harry looked at Blaise.

"Well, I disagree with anti-first generation prejudice. I also believe firmly in what I said in the library. Magic should be free. The government should not be able to decide what we can and can't know. By all means, criminalise acts, but not the magic used to commit such acts." He looked at the clock. "It's getting close to curfew, you should head to your rooms." The young Slytherin's all bid each other goodnight and went to their respective rooms.

**3rd September 1991, 13:50 PM, Potions Classroom, The Dungeons, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

Snape was a complete and utter bastard. The lesson had been going on for fifteen minutes and Harry had been insulted and degraded no less than 17 times. From Draco's word's yesterday, he'd expected poorly hidden resentment, but he'd thought the man would at least act professional in his lessons. The only good thing about the lesson was Weasel getting a detention for melting his cauldron. He also lost ten points every time he laughed at Snape's insults towards Harry.

**13th September 1991, 20:41PM, The Dungeons, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

Merlin, Snape was a bastard. For the last hour, Harry had been scraping the remains of a failed potion off of some of the tables. Harry was pretty sure the tables were the ones Longbottom, Weasel, Crabbe and Goyle used. He turned a corner and finally saw the wall that hid the Slytherin common room. "Alchemy." All he wanted to do, was go to his room, have a shower and go to bed. He managed to get halfway across the room before he was stopped by three older students. Draco has been nervous about a possible confrontation with this group. They were a group made up of some of the biggest supporters of pureblood supremacy in the entire school. Marcus Flint, Tarquin Rowle and Megara Yaxley. There were others in their group, but apparently they didn't feel like it was necessary to include everyone in this.

"Well, look at the little half-blood coming back to the snake pit. Didn't your mother ever tell you not to go where you're not wanted?" Marcus Flint, the undisputed leader of their gang. He had to be the leader. After all, his father was infamous for refusing to join the Death Eaters because he thought they were too soft. "Oh, wait. The mudblood whore died on her knees in front of the Dark Lord." He turned to Rowle. "You know, Tarquin, I always thought mudbloods were only good when they were on their knees." Flint laughed uproariously as Rowle and Yaxley smirked.

"Now, Marcus, don't be mean to the little firsty." Flint turned to Yaxley in shock. "After all, it wasn't his fault his whore of a mother died." She smirked cruelly. "It was her fault for being a filthy mudblood. She even dragged his father down with her. James Potter might have been a blood traitor, but he was still a pureblood." Rowle chuckled.

"Meg, you're forgetting the most important thing." Yaxley looked at him expectantly. "Potter's an orphan. We can be as mean as we like to him, it's not like anyone will care."

Harry sighed. "I don't care about why you dislike me. I just want to go to bed. Please, leave me alone." The three laughed hysterically.

"Leave you alone?" Flint was wiping fictitious tears from his eyes. "As if we'd do that. No, you need to learn your place, mudblood." Harry raised an eyebrow. "Oh, come on. You're a half-blood. It's basically the same thing as a mudblood, so I might as well call you one. Or are you confused at what your place is?"

Harry decided to play along slightly. Maybe he'd be allowed to go back to his room faster. Then he'd start to think of a way to kill Flint without anyone realising it was him. "So, what is my place?" Flint smirked.

"At my feet. Licking my boots clean." Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes. First calling his mother a whore, now telling him to lick his boots. Didn't these people have any originality? "So, go ahead." Harry looked up at Flint in confusion. "Oh, come on. Not even a mudblood like you can be that thick." He lifted his foot off the ground. "Lick. My. Boot. Mudblood." Harry was about to retort, when another voice joined the conversation.

"Leave him alone, Flint!" The three pureblood supremacists glanced towards the voice, where Draco, Blaise, Theo and Daphne were standing, wands out. Draco was the one to have spoken and was levelling his wand directly at Flint's face.

Flint merely laughed. "I never thought I'd see the day when a Malfoy would be a blood traitor. Castor, Pollux. Escort the firsty's back to their rooms." The Borgin twins, who were sitting nearby, sneered and approached Harry's friends, wands withdrawn.

"Leave them alone, Flint. They're not a part of this." Flint turned back to Harry. "Guys, I'm fine. Put your wands away."

"But, Harry-"

"Do it, Draco!" Harry's friends put their wands away. "You see, Flint. Everything's fine. Call off your attack dogs." Harry ignored the glares of the Borgin's. Flint began to chuckle.

"Castor, Pollux. Continue to escort them out of here. If they decide to go for their wands again, curse the filthy blood traitors." Harry scowled. "I told you, Potter. You need to learn your place. And someone in your position has no right to make demands." Harry looked down at the ground. Rowle's eyes widened slightly as he felt the atmosphere in the room change. It was subtle. He could only feel it because he was more sensitive to magic than most.

"You know, Flint. At first, I was going to merely insult you and your intelligence before returning to my room." Flint snorted. And Harry finished collecting his magic together. "But now?" The Borgin's both fell to the ground, screaming in agony. "Now, you're going to suffer." Before, Harry's voice was as if he was having a pleasant conversation about the weather. Now, it made several people look for a dementor. Harry's head rose up to look Flint dead in the eye and Flint froze. Normally, Harry's eyes were a pleasant emerald colour. With Harry's magic gathered up within him, ready to strike, his eyes made Flint think of the Unforgivable he'd spent hours perfecting.

"What d-did you d-do to them?" Harry giggled, a young innocent sound.

"Oh, I just shattered both of their kneecaps." Flint would never know what about that statement made him piss himself. It could have been the childlike voice he said it in. It could also have been the fact that Harry had not only broken two people's bones, but does so without moving or making a sound. In reality, it was Harry using his magic to put pressure on Flint's bladder. A bit childish, but it would humiliate Flint. Besides, Harry was still a child.

"Sh-shut it, mudblood!" Harry turned to look at the idiotic girl who was trying not to show her fear. Trying and failing. Harry sneered.

"Draco, what is this whore's name?" Harry knew her name, he just wanted to give the impression that she wasn't important enough to remember. Draco quickly told him her name was Megara. "Thank you. Well, Megara. I must admit that Flint's idea has some merit." She frowned in confusion. "Those with no power should lick the boots of their superiors. So, would you kindly lick my boots?" He heard a brief scuffle that he ignored in favour of allowing his magic to surround her oppressively. The magic forced her to her knees, though she still glared at Harry.

"I will never lick your boots, mudblood! I would rather die, than submit to you!" Harry smiled and gently stroked her cheek, before gripping her face hard.

"I was hoping you'd say that." He leaned in close to her face and grinned. Her eyes grew wide with fear as her sight was filled with the glow of the Avada Kedavra. Her muffled screams made the entire common room wonder what Harry was doing to her. Their question was answered when Harry removed his hand and she immediately began spitting out blood. "I've got to be honest. I thought you'd have a tongue piercing." Flint gasped as he realised Harry was holding Yaxley's tongue. Harry leaned down and used her tongue to wipe some mostly imaginary dirt from the bottom of his shoe, before throwing it into the growing puddle of blood coming from her mouth. He turned to the remaining members of the gang. "Kneel."

Flint opened his mouth to retort that they would never kneel before a mudblood, but was stopped by Rowle doing exactly that. Flint stared in shock at his friend, struggling to think of something to say. "I see Rowle has some sense." Flint glared at Harry. "What about you, Flint?" Harry smirked. "Are you going to do the intelligent thing, or will you continue with your idiotic hatred?" Flint glared at Harry.

"Despite being betrayed by Rowle," Flint glared fiercely at the sixth year. "I will not kneel. I will never kneel to a pathetic mudblood like yourself." Harry smirked and surrounded Flint with his magic. The sheer power of Harry's magic forced Flint to his knees and caused Rowle to shudder in fear.

Harry moved his hand towards Flint's face, but was stopped by Flint shifting backwards. "Come closer, Flint." Flint resolutely ignored Harry's order, preferring to glare at the first year. "Flint," Harry said, malice and pain dripping from his every word. "Do as I say." Flint, in spite of his desires, listened to his basic survival instinct and leant forwards, towards the young demon in front of him.

"Thank you, Flint." Harry grasped both sides of Flint's trollish head and smirked. Flint's brow furrowed in confusion, before his entire face contorted to a look of sheer terror and pain. No sound left his throat, but it was clear he was trying to scream in a futile attempt to lessen the pain. The silent screaming continued for what seemed like the entire night, before Harry finally got bored of the torture and allowed Flint to huddle up into a crying ball. A shell of who he once was.

"Now, Rowle." The boy in question shuddered. "Obviously, I need to punish you for your role in tonight's events." Rowle turned his eyes downwards and briefly considered running, before discounting the idea as useless. "However, you were smart enough to know your place and kneel. So, for that, I'll show some leniency. Don't make me regret it."

Rowle raised his head in relieved shock. "Of course not, my L-" His next word was cut off by his jaw slamming shut with enough force to lodge his lower jaw inside his upper.

Harry turned to the room in general. "Someone get them to the hospital wing. Once they are allowed to leave, treat them the same as you normally would." He began to make his exit. "Oh, and if anyone breathes a word of my involvement, I will be very disappointed." The room collectively shuddered. "If anyone asks, it was a duel between friends that got out of hand." He returned to his chambers, closely followed by his friends.

"Harry, I hope I never do anything to make you that angry at me." Harry smirked at Blaise and assured him that he probably wouldn't.

"Why did you let that slut get off so easy?" Harry turned to Daphne and smiled at the expression of pure rage on her face.

"I didn't think her mind would be able to take much more pain." He smirked. "And I'd prefer to not break someone's mind in my first month at school." Blaise snickered.

"Of course, everyone knows that you don't start breaking people's minds until your second month." The young Slytherin's laughed cruelly at the thought of Yaxley drooling in a hospital bed whilst they were at next months halloween feast.

"If I could be certain I could get away with it, she'd be permanently hospitalised by now." Harry smirked. "Of course, if she were repeatedly cursed after having her tongue reattached, I wouldn't have any complaints." Daphne's pale green eyes shone with malice as she began thinking of ways to ensure Yaxley would never even think about insulting Harry again.

**16th September 1991, 10:13 AM, Library, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom **

"Here comes Daphne." Harry looked in the direction Draco indicated. "She looks happy." Harry agreed with Draco's summary. She looked smug. Which probably meant that Yaxley was on her way to the hospital wing. Draco apparently thought the same thing. "What did you Curse her with?"

Daphne smirked. "I didn't curse anyone. Someone else got her before I could. Pretty nasty Curse as well."

"If you want, I can teach it to you." The young Slytherin's aimed their wands at the newcomer. "I just came here to talk." Draco glared at him.

"Why would we listen to anything you have to say, Rowle?"

Rowle bowed his head. "Because I know my place now. I falsely believed that my blood made me better than less pure wizards." He raised his head to look at Harry. "But Lord Potter's mother was a Muggleborn. And I could feel his magic. I am not better than him. I'm not even on the same level as him."

"Rowle, as much as I enjoy hearing you praise me, there's a limit to my patience. What do you want?"

"I want to help you. Have any of you heard of a Slytherin Court?" Harry and his friends shook their heads, with the exception of Blaise.

"I'm Italian. We typically don't hear much about Hogwarts traditions. Normally, we go to Beauxbatons."

Rowle nodded his head. "I didn't think any of you would have heard of it. The Slytherin Court is the oldest tradition of Slytherin House, existing for as long as Hogwarts has. You can not go against the Court." Harry put his wand away to listen, though the others kept theirs trained on Rowle. "There are three steps before you can establish a Court. Lord Potter, you have completed two of them and will easily finish the last step." Harry remained silent for several seconds.

"Put your wands away. Except for you, Theo. Keep yours out, but hide it. We don't want Madam Pince interrupting us." He waited for his friends to do as he said. "What are these steps?"

Rowle let out a deep breath. He had half expected Harry to refuse to listen. "The first step you completed, was having the only potential rival submit to you." Harry looked quizzically towards Draco. "Mr Malfoy was the only one in your year with enough potential power to rival you enough to rule the hierarchy. When he instead befriended you and allowed you to be the leader without a fight, you unknowingly completed one of the three objectives."

"The second step, was overthrowing the current hierarchy. Obviously, you did that when you put me, Flint and Yaxley in the hospital wing. Flint has submitted for now, but he will want to take revenge. If you were the Slytherin King, he would be unable to fight."

Harry raised his eyebrow. "Slytherin King?"

"The leader of the Court is known as either the Slytherin King or Queen. The final step, which is typically the easiest, is to have three Slytherin's in each year respect you and your power. This can sometimes be difficult because it's hard to respect someone you don't know and it can be hard to know everyone in the House."

"But I'm Harry Potter. People have been hearing about me for ten years." Rowle nodded eagerly.

"Exactly. Plus, I don't think anyone will forget you after Friday. And even if Pureblood supremacists try to sabotage you, there's enough Half-bloods and non-bigoted Pureblood's that would support you." Harry thought about it for a minute.

"What benefits would I receive if I were King?"

"The King and his Court are always highly influential. Slytherin Kings and Queens are always remembered by history. Except for Tom Riddle. He just disappeared into obscurity. But his Court became the first Death Eaters."

"I see." Harry ruminated on it for a few moments. "See if a Court can be set up. If it can, I shall be King. If not, I'll find another way to rule Slytherin."

"Of course, Lord Potter." Rowle bowed before Harry and made to leave, when he was stopped by Harry.

"Please, don't call me Lord Potter. I consider the members of my Court to be friends. And my friends call me Harry." Tarquin smiled and thanked Harry for the position, before leaving to enable the establishment of the first Slytherin Court in forty-six years.


	4. Chapter4-TheFirstGenerationWitch

A/N A large inspiration for this story is The Rise of a Dark Lord by Little.Miss.Xanda. Unfortunately, it isn't complete and hasn't been updated since 2015, so probably won't be completed. I have taken inspiration from their idea of the Slytherin Court and will probably take inspiration from more of their ideas before the end of this story. Sorry for the long delay. I don't own Harry Potter.

Chapter 4 - The First Generation Witch

**1st October 1991, 1:33 PM, Potions Corridor, The Dungeons, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

It had been just over two weeks since the foundation of the current Court. In Harry's opinion, everything was going wonderfully. The more stubborn Purebloods had fallen in line and were obeying the rules set by the Court. If Harry had felt so inclined, he could've lorded his Kingship over the entire House, but he chose to keep things simple. He only had three rules. The traditional rule that had been in place since the foundation of Slytherin, only one person of each gender per year is permitted to speak to the Court. The rule was enacted originally to prevent ambitious slimeballs from toadying up to the Court in the hopes of getting in. When a third year by the name of Bellatrix Rosier ignored the rule, the entire house found out what happens to rule breakers, courtesy of Daphne and the Curse Tarquin had used on Yaxley just before approaching Harry.

The only people allowed to talk to the Court, were Peregrin Selwyn and Xena Scabior for the seventh years and Ambrose Macnair and a member of the black sheep branch of the Diggory's, Enid, for the sixth years. For the fifth years, it was the two prefects, much to Flint's disgust. Infamous Death Eater, Bellatrix Lestrange's son, Darius and Artemis Travers were the representatives of fourth year. Thormod Gibbon and Clementine Malfoy, one of Draco's cousins, represented third. Lycoris Burke managed to beat out his brother, Alaric, for the position in second year, joined by Eugenia Hopkirk. And for the year that contained most of the Court members, Terrence Runcorn and Pansy Parkinson were decided upon. Most of the Court felt that Parkinson only wanted the position to rectify her mistake of leaving, so she can one day be married to one of the members.

The second rule, was a ban on spreading Pureblood supremacist beliefs outside the Common Room. Harry didn't care what beliefs they spread inside the Common Room, as long as they were prepared to deal with his Court's, often violent, defence of First Generations. Yaxley and Flint ignored this rule extensively. After about a week of punishment, on top of the grudge Daphne already held against her, Yaxley convinced her parents to transfer her to Durmstrang. Flint tried that as well, but failed the entry exam.

The final rule was a ban on bullying, unless they prevent anyone, even their victims, from knowing it was caused by a Slytherin. Harry's life was going to be difficult enough already, without the entire school hating Slytherin.

Of course, he knew that some people knew things were different in Slytherin. Snape and Dumbledore were both intelligent enough to see the small changes in the House. Harry didn't think Snape had figured out that it was a Court, but Dumbledore had been teaching at Hogwarts when the last Court had existed, so he might know. The biggest surprise was that Quirrell knew there was a Court. He didn't let on, but it was obvious to Harry that he knew.

"Here come the mini-Death Eaters." Something that was not a surprise in the slightest, was Weasel's continual hatred of the Court. Harry knew he hadn't noticed the difference in Slytherin House, he was too stupid. Unfortunately, he'd managed to convince Finnigan and Thomas that Draco and Theo both hate First Generation magicals. When Tarquin joined, Weasel saw that as yet more proof that the last remaining Potter was a Dark Wizard. Neither of the non-pureblood Gryffindor boys particularly liked Weasel, especially not after his words to Bones. So, whilst they weren't friends with Weasel, they no longer stopped him from insulting the Court. "What? Nothing to say, Death Eaters?"

Blaise laughed. "Come on, Weasel. If we did want to be Death Eaters, why would we be insulted by you saying that? It would be like us calling you popular. Or rich. Or smart. Or... hey, Theo. What's the opposite of pathetic?"

"Admirable." Blaise turned back to Weasel with a wide smile.

"Yeah, it would be like us calling you admirable." During the conversation, Weasel's face had been getting progressively redder, until Harry thought he quite resembled Walrus when Harry was six and Whale had broken a vase and blamed it on Harry. Much like Walrus, Weasel lashed out in rage.

"Shut it, you filthy, Death Eating bastard!" He ran towards Blaise with his arms outstretched. A brief expression of panic flashed on Blaise's face before ropes sprang up around Weasel, causing him to trip over.

"Weasley!" The other Gryffindor's flinched. None of them had noticed that Snape had arrived. Obviously, the Slytherin's didn't allow themselves to be surprised by his appearance. "Twenty points from Gryffindor and two weeks detention! I'd have thought you'd be more intelligent after the howler from your mother, but apparently even that amount of common sense eludes you." He glared at the rest of the class, lingering briefly on Harry. "Inside. Sit down. You're learning how to make the Herbicide Potion. Instructions are on the board."

"Um, Sir?" Snape glared at Weasel. "I need to be able to move my arms to make a potion."

Snape sneered. "Do you honestly think I'd let you anywhere near a cauldron after your pitiful display just now?" The Slytherin first years grinned. "Your grade for today relies entirely on Longbottom's skills, as non-existent as they are. You'd better pray he doesn't melt yet another cauldron." Longbottom's head sank. Clearly he didn't expect to be able to make the potion.

**1st October 1991, 2:33 PM, Potions Classroom, The Dungeons, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

Longbottom had been right. His cauldron was now a smouldering mess that Weasel was going to have to clean up at his detention tonight. "You are dismissed." To no one's surprise, Longbottom packed his things away as fast as humanly possible before practically running from the room. "Potter." Harry looked up in surprise. "Stay." Weasel snickered, until a glare from Snape made him shut his mouth with an audible snap.

Harry smirked at Weasley's rebuking, before continuing to pack up his things, to save time after Snape's conversation. He'd noticed a surprising lack of insults from Snape this lesson, so he wasn't too concerned about getting into any trouble. He was curious as to what Snape wanted. After the last person left, Snape turned to Harry.

"I've noticed some changes in my House recently. I'd like to discuss these changes with you." Harry didn't think Snape would like to discuss anything with him, so he assumed Snape thought Harry was behind the changes. Had he figured out about the Court? "My snakes have stopped harassing the other Houses. And they've stopped talking about Pureblood's being better than Muggleborn's. These changes started happening right after Rowle joined your group. Coincidentally, right after he was put into the hospital wing with a broken jaw." Snape narrowed his eyes. "Is there a Court?" Harry smirked. Apparently, Snape's hatred hadn't blinded him to the truth. Good. Draco was becoming a bit upset at his godfathers ignorance.

"There is a Court." Snape raised an eyebrow, clearly waiting for more detail. "The Court consists of Draco, Blaise, Theo, Daphne and Tarquin. As I'm sure you've guessed, I am the King." Harry had been honest. Now, it was time to see if Snape would obey the Court, or commit treason. That was what it would be for a Slytherin to work against the Court. Treason.

"Am I permitted to tell Dumbledore about the Court?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"I'd assumed he already knew?" Snape shook his head.

"He believes there is one and has asked me to get him confirmation. However, he believes the King is Rowle." Harry snickered at the assumption. "He believes Rowle has manipulated you into sharing his pureblood supremacist beliefs and used your fame to establish the Court. My godson, Zabini, Nott and Greengrass being allowed in is down to your friendship with them, in his mind. An olive branch, if you will. To get you to agree to the Court."

Harry let out a cruel laugh. "As if anyone could manipulate me into doing something I don't want to. Did he not connect the dots between Tarquin's hospitalisation and the formation of the Court?" Snape smirked at his employer's misguided beliefs.

"He believes that Rowle suggested using you to form a Court to Flint and Yaxley. Given their distaste towards Half-Bloods, they were against the idea. It came to wands, and regrettably, all were hospitalised. That's also the supposed reason they aren't a part of the Court. And why Yaxley isn't in Hogwarts anymore and Flint tried to leave. Because they acted against the Court and don't want to suffer for it." Acrid smoke bellowed out of a cauldron on Snape's desk, forcing him to quickly add some porcupine quills into the mixture, to prevent painful consequences. Harry turned around and began to make his way out of the classroom. "What am I to tell Dumbledore?"

Harry smirked and gripped the door handle softly. "Tell the old fool, he was right about his assumption. And nothing else. Let him continue to underestimate me." Snape nodded towards Harry's back.

"It will be done." His eyes widened as he realised how similar that phrase was to one he'd often say to his old master.

"Good." Harry opened the door and left. Snape could hear his godson interrogating Harry as the door began to close. He was momentarily angry at Draco for not going to his next lesson before remembering that it was History of Magic. Binns probably wouldn't even notice they were late. He probably wouldn't notice if they didn't turn up, but he knew that Harry was one of the two students who actually paid attention in History, so he wouldn't be ok with skiving. And his Court would go to show solidarity.

**1st October 1991, 7:46 PM, Headmaster's Tower, Seventh Floor, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

"Well, Severus. Have you managed to find out about a potential Court?" Severus looked at the man he'd worked for ever since Lily had died, a look of disgust hidden by a mask of mere indifference.

"Yes, I have." He had not fully decided whether he would betray Potter or not. He knew it would be treason to betray him, but he'd betrayed the last King of Slytherin. "I kept Potter behind after class today and asked him." Dumbledore already knew about Potter's surprising skill with Occlumency, no doubt something the brat had inherited. "There is indeed a Court. The members are as follows. Tarquin Rowle, Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott, Daphne Greengrass and Harry Potter." Snape turned his face towards the ground and sighed. "My godson is also a member. You were right in your assumption."

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "It is as I feared then. Rowle has the ambition of finishing Voldemort's quest for the destruction of Muggleborn magicals and to do so, he has brainwashed the last of the Potter's into hating the innocent." He sighed heavily. "Leave me, Severus. I must think upon how best to undo the indoctrination in young Harry. It's a good thing we have a few years yet. With any luck, the Court will fall apart after their King leaves them at the end of next year." Severus nodded and left the old man to his incorrect theories. He hadn't even needed to lie. He held his own doubts as to whether he did the right thing, but not all Slytherin Kings became Dark Lords. They always changed the world and Severus chose to believe that the newest King would change the world for the better. After all, Potter had managed to turn his godson away from pureblood supremacy. He couldn't be that bad.

**28th October 1991, 12:28 PM, Library, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom **

Harry glanced up towards the only person in the library that wasn't a member of his Court. Granger was one of his potential inroads to Gryffindor. He hadn't spoken to his Court about his desire to make a multi-House Court yet. It would be the first of its kind in history, if he was successful. He knew his Court would be fine with it, though he was a little bit concerned about their initial reactions when they found out they'd have to befriend Gryffindor's. And, since he wanted to add Granger to his Court, he was concerned about how they'd react to befriending a first generation witch. After all, until recently, they had all, with the exceptions of Daphne and Blaise, hated first generations and thought of them as scum.

He knew Granger would approach him soon. After all, he'd attempted to arrange for Tarquin to have all of the copies of his Occlumency book removed from the library, only for Tarquin to inform him that all Occlumency books were stored in the Restricted Section. The professors may like Granger a lot, but none of them would be willing to let a first year into the Restricted Section. So, she would have no choice, but to come to Harry and ask to borrow his book. And Harry would begin sharing his beliefs with her. Obviously not his more extreme beliefs, she didn't seem to have been abused by her parents. He doubted she'd be anywhere near as accepting of his muggle hatred as his Court was. Of course, eventually he'd convince her to join his Court and help spread his beliefs throughout Gryffindor. Plus, maybe she'd grow more distant with her parents and be more receptive to his extremism. After all, what muggle would be able to comprehend the esoteric laws of permutomancy as laid out by Sebastian Caveney? They wouldn't understand her and would slowly neglect her or demand she gave up her birthright to appease their pathetic muggle inferiority's. Harry had not known Granger for very long, but he knew that she would not look upon that highly.

But, that was all in the future. After she'd approached him. He knew she'd do it soon, but he was not going to make the first move. From what he'd seen, she was rather stubborn, so he imagined she'd try to do her best to find her own copy, before finally giving up and coming to see him. He guessed it would take her no more than a week to give up. In all honesty, he was surprised she hadn't given up already. After all, she had managed to search the entire library in the first week of school.

**31st October 1991, 7:42 AM, Gryffindor Common Room, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom **

Hermione Granger was angry. She liked to think of herself as a very calm and reserved person, but Ronald Weasley really tested her patience. She'd heard Lord Potter and his friends refer to Ronald as "Weasel" and, whilst she usually disapproved of name-calling, she couldn't bring herself to particularly care. Truth be told, there were a few times she'd considered calling him Weasel. She'd definitely called him that in her head quite a few times. The boy was lazy, obnoxious, loud and, quite frankly, the rudest person Hermione had ever had the displeasure of meeting. The reason for her current anger at Ronald was his continual insults towards Lord Potter. Especially since Lord Potter had made it very clear that he did not hate Muggleborn's. He even made it clear that he found the term to be offensive. And Ronald was constantly slandering Lord Potter. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair.

"That's enough, Ronald!" The boy in question stared at the First Generation witch in shock. "I will not allow you to go on slandering Lord Potter like this! He has done nothing to deserve your hatred! He is not the Pureblood bigot you would paint him as! On the contrary, when Neville Longbottom thought he was, Lord Potter assured us he wasn't and even said he found the term Muggleborn to be insulting! He even offered to lend me a book I saw him reading, if I couldn't find it in the library! Me, a Muggleborn!" Hermione drew in a deep breath to steady her nerves after ranting at a fellow student. She couldn't believe she'd just done that.

Nor could Ronald, apparently. It took him almost a full minute before he fully registered what she'd been saying, but he was too biased against Potter to accept her words as truth. Plus, the bossy bookworm had really managed to get on the redhead's nerves. "And you believed him? You believed that a Slytherin future Dark Lord would ever help a bossy, bushy-haired, know-it-all MUDBLOOD with no friends!?" Hermione flinched back in shock as the rest of the Common Room gasped. She didn't know what a Mudblood was, but judging from the common room's reaction, it wasn't a good thing. She blinked back tears as she guessed it must be an insult to her blood status, before fleeing the room to go and hide. Had she stayed for ten seconds longer, she'd have seen three older red headed boys come down from the dormitories and verbally tear Ronald a new one.

**31st October 1991, 7:21 PM, Great Hall, Hogwarts, Scotland, United Kingdom**

"TROOOOOLLLL! IN THE DUNGEONS!!" The entire student population of Hogwarst, bar one stared at Professor Quirrell. "Thought you ought to know." The brave DADA Professor fell into a dead faint, unleashing pandemonium amongst the student population. The Headmaster quickly silenced the Hall and sent everyone back to their dormitories. A sharp glare and slight shake of his head was all Professor Snape needed to tell his students to stay in the Great Hall and not go to their dormitory.

The troll was never found in the dungeons, however it's corpse was found on the third floor, next to a battered, but still breathing two headed dog. The third head, was found on the other side of the room. It wouldn't be until the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw first years transfiguration class the next day that anyone would realise they hadn't seen Hermione Granger. And it wouldn't be until lunch time that an unfortunate Sally-Anne Perks would find the broken body of her classmate in the girls bathroom, surrounded by a brown pool of dried blood.


End file.
